Leaders across Connecticut are condemning antisemitic behavior from Fairfield College Preparatory School students after comments allegedly made in March on social media were publicized by the New York Times on Monday.
“Sadly, this is not the first time that a high school sporting competition has led to behavior that is not only unsportsmanlike, but hateful and dangerous. Antisemitism should never be dismissed as ‘trash talk’ between competing fans,” said Christine Vitale, Fairfield’s First Selectperson, in a statement to The Mirror. “Even when it is in the context of banter between sporting rivals, it is wrong, absolutely unacceptable and will not be tolerated in the Town of Fairfield.”
According to the New York Times, the posts included images with captions like “Win or lose we booze, and at least we’re not Jews. Hail Fairfield.”
The Times also obtained video depicting a simulation of a sexual assault with the victim’s head covered by the New Canaan High School logo. “Jew Canaan getting what they deserve”, the post’s caption said, according to The Times.
The Mirror did not review the since-deleted posts, but Fairfield Prep confirmed the existence of such comments.
“Fairfield Prep is aware of a recent incident involving offensive and antisemitic public social media posts involving a small number of individuals within the student body, and takes these matters seriously,” said Lauren Castagnola, a spokesperson for Fairfield Prep. “Antisemitism is repugnant and antithetical to our values.”
The school said it is conducting an internal investigation into the incident that occurred in the days leading up to and following the March 23 Fairfield Prep-New Canaan hockey championship game, where the New Canaan Rams won 3-1.
Due to student privacy laws, the school is not commenting on specific disciplinary processes, but said “no members of Fairfield Prep’s hockey team were cited or disciplined in connection with this matter.”
On Monday night, Fairfield’s state House delegation issued a joint statement condemning the incident, calling for personal reflection “alongside structural accountability.”
“Jesuit educators around the world teach their students to be, ‘Men and Women for others.’ This is an opportunity to live those values by repairing the harms caused and find healing through action in our community and beyond,” said state Reps. Jennifer Leeper, Cristin McCarthy Vahey and Sarah Keitt.
March’s incident is not the first involving antisemitic rhetoric at the all-boys Jesuit school.
In 2018, CBS News reported that Fairfield Prep fans were recorded chanting hateful, antisemitic chants from the sidelines at a lacrosse game against Staples High School in Westport. Some witnesses said Prep fans were chanting “we have Christmas” when the Catholic school had possession and “Happy Hanukkah” when the Westport players had the ball and scored.
Diane Sloyer, the CEO of the United Jewish Federation of Stamford, New Canaan and Darien, said the incident involving New Canaan High School is one of many recently reported in the area.
“This was one incident. Unfortunately, there are many [incidents] that nobody, that people don’t know about because unless somebody tells us or feels comfortable reporting an antisemitic incident, we don’t know about it,” Sloyer said.
Connecticut has the eighth-highest rate of antisemitic incidents in schools, according to the Anti-Defamation League. However, Sloyer says that many cases of antisemitism go unreported.
“If they don’t hear about half of them, then we feel like there’s not a lot of antisemitism in the state of Connecticut, when we know it’s not true,” Sloyer added, emphasizing the importance of reporting incidents involving hateful and antisemitic speech.
Julian Nazario 